So last month, I was pretty pumped up from my new Cardiolatino classes and being able to sweat things out at the gym again.  I must have gotten quite psyched up about it and kept talking about the benefits of exercising to my family.  Between work and raising 3 kids, my sister and her family pretty much have their hands and legs all tied up.  Any free time they had been either watching tv or the occasional window-shopping.  I wanted to motivate them to do more.

After some time, we managed to find an available weekend where the kids did not have extra activities to attend and the parents weren’t too tired to pry away from the comforts of the bed and couch. For those of you who don’t already know, it can take a lot of preparation time to get 3 kids and 3 adults outa the house. Between the packing of bags filled with diapers and water bottles, to deciding what clothes and shoes are best for a morning walk in the park, we had departed later than planned.

By the time we got to the park, the sun was already out and about, and almost immediately you can hear the boys screaming “mummy, it’s so hot! it’s so hot!”  But there was enough flora and fauna to distract the kids, and soon they were running around trying to discover more species.  With one baby in tow, the adults took a slow leisurely walk, and this was exactly what I wanted for my family. Yes, the heat and humidity was a tad unbearable, but there was enough shades from the surrounding trees to cool us.  None of us were monitoring the distance we covered, but it was certainly a healthy and fun time for the family to get some form of exercise together and to explore parts of the city we had never seen before.

And in April, I also got to do something I’ve always loved – I got to drive again.  I’d gotten my driver’s license many years ago, but not owning my own vehicle, I was slowly losing the confidence.  It’s expensive to rent a vehicle and I didn’t want to impose on the family car since my brother-in-law needs it for work and to take the family around. The public transport system is also reliable and has sufficient coverage to take me from home to wherever I wanted.  Since getting my license decades ago, I’d probably driven an average of once a year?  Yup, that’s how little driving I had, and sometimes even wonder if its safe for people like me to be back on the road again without a refresher test!

However, as the family was gonna be away for an extended period, my brother-in-law insisted that I take the car.  Why he would even trust me with his car baffled me, but if he had that much faith in me, surely I should trust myself! So before they left, we had some practice, with him safely seated next to me, to remind me of things to look out for. Then came the day for me to drive them to the airport, which was essentially driving from one end of the country to the other, about 45km, I reckon and along the highway, mind you! But the more nerve-wrecking bit was having to drive back home, without my ‘safety driver’ next to me, all on my own, in the dark of the night!  What a big sigh of relief by the time I safely parked the car when we got home!

Getting behind the wheels again, I was excited but nervous. I’m sure anyone reading this would have a good chuckle upon hearing that I would constantly check the mirrors, gears, and mirrors.  Then it was the nervousness of keeping to speed limits and lane checks, as I was very cautious not to pick up a ticket nor to obstruct traffic. Even when I parked the car, I was always nervous if I had pulled the hand-brakes or if I had locked hte vehicle. The first couple of days, I would only venture around the neighbourhood, and was careful to avoid peak traffic hours. As days went by, I was getting a little bit bolder to explore further, but still drove only at non-peak hours.

Then came the time to pick up the family at the airport, and this time I was a lot more confident to get back on the highway, in peak hour. Things were running very smoothly for the days I had the car, until I arrived at the car park. In the moment of excitement, I had mis-judged the angle to turn the vehicle and hit the pillar! Bang! Immediately my heart sank, my mind went blank, and all I could utter was “Shit! Shit! Shit!”. I got out of the driver’s seat to check on the damage and I must have stopped breathing for 10 seconds when I saw the scratches and paint marks on the car and against the pillar.  I was worried about the damages and the inconvenience it would cost my brother-in-law to get it repaired.  I had all this horrible, guilty feelings in me and must have painted a terrible picture to them for them to also worry.

Yet, when he saw the car, he merely brushed it aside and said it wasn’t a big deal!  I was worried that he was being polite about the whole thing but he just kept reassuring me that it wasn’t a serious damage at all. Because his vehicle was an old one and he was already planning to replace it, he had not even bothered to get it repainted nor looked at. Maybe I knew that little about vehicles but we had the car for a few more months so it must mean the damage was really superficial. And in that time we kept the car, I was reminded and always guilty of my oversight, but it also made me realise what forgiving and easy-going people my sister and brother-in-law are. They could have been unhappy with me for damaging their car, but was reassuring of feelings instead.

Maybe some day, I will be as comfortable in a car as I used to.be  What my brother-in-law considers a minor incident was a scary enough experience for me, but I still love driving too much to give up completely. I am determined not to let my driver’s license be a white elephant, and look forward to the next chance I have.  I hope some day to be able to go on a road trip, with me in the driver’s seat.